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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. row — to paddle
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. plane — a tool
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. file — a tool
  9. file — a document
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. chest — of your body
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. bear — the animal
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. chest — of your body
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. chest — a box
  20. row — a line
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. bear — the animal
  23. rush — hurry
  24. file — a line of people

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com